12 Chapter 12 : End of the preliminary phase
After the events of Hinata facing Neji, things returned to normal despite a fight that almost broke out between Lee and Neji, they received a warning and the next fight was announced on the screen.
[Rock Lee VS Kankuro]
"Finally it's my turn, I was really starting to get bored…" Kankuro said with a confident smile before joining the arena, Lee for his part directly jumped towards the arena and looked at Kankuro seriously.
"I'm in a really bad mood so we'll sort this out quickly..." He said as Kankuro looked at him mockingly.
The signal was given and what happened shocked almost everyone . Lee disappeared from his location using his raw speed to appear in the void preparing a hammer kick and while surprised Kankuro tried to parry the attack, just as Lee's foot came into contact, Kankuro's body collapsed.
His arms broke like the whole area of his body where Lee's foot passed, he split Kankuro's body in two and it turned out that this body was actually that of his puppet while the real Kankuro was in the bandages instead of the puppet.
How had he managed to destroy it so quickly and in one hit ? For some logical reason they didn't respect in the main reality and that was the weight.
Lee carries very heavy weights on his legs so the slightest of his kicks must have had a lot of weight, if he is able to support his weights and move his legs that quickly then the speed of the kick combined with the weight would give a powerful destructive impact.
Thus, Obito being his friend but also his rival greatly helped him to realize his strengths, Lee who had no talent was nevertheless one of the most dangerous fighter in Konoha.
With his weights, Lee had terrible power and without them, he had prodigious speed. Two terrifying assets for someone who could only use melee.
"I advise you to give up now that your toy is out of use, I'm particularly angry at the moment. I won't be responsible for what happens next if you persist..." Lee said coldly looking at Kankuro still in incomprehension of what had just happened, he admitted his defeat before joining Suna team .
They had other plans and this exam wasn't their priority, his puppet had been destroyed and he had to replace it, there was no point in continuing a duel without real stakes against a strong opponent when he had lost his trump carde. He saw Lee's movement speed and knew that even using his destroyed puppet's poisoned blade-wielding limbs was going to be useless
Lee was declared the winner and the next match was announced…
[Kinuta Dosu VS Uzumaki Obito]
Seeing Obito's name pop up caught everyone's attention, those who knew him like Naruto, Lee or those who trained him like Gai or Hiruzen knew he was strong but not to what extent now .
Those who knew him indirectly knew that He was said to be the most powerful ninja of his generation so they were really curious, the genins and the Jonins alike.
Gaara was also intrigued by him but the greatest curiosité and also disappointment came from Orochimaru who wanted to see him face Kabuto to gauge his skills, Kabuto had to withdraw earlier but under orders from his master, he stayed hoping to face Obito but fate had chosen Dosu.
Obito moved in Shunshin to appear on the stage and Dosu joined him there, looking at him with satisfaction.
"If there are people hoping to see how powerful my brother is during this fight, they will be disappointed." Naruto said shaking his head and when asked for an explanation, he simply replied that Obito hated wasting time
"I would've liked to face Sasuke but from what is said you're better, you were even first in the tests. I hope you're ready to lose..." Dosu said hoping to intimidate Obito who looked at him smiling slightly.
The signal was given and the attention of the audience was at its highest level. Dosu rushed towards Obito at very high speed to attack him with his sound amplifier but in an instant everything became blurry for him and his body was slammed hard against the ground he tried to move his arm but he was like caught in a vice.
When Dosu looked at his arm, it was actually under Obito's foot stomping on it. Dosu tried to fidget but just then Obito punched him in the chest and the blow was hard enough to crack the ground below while making Dosu spit out a huge amount of blood before he lose consciousness.
Just like Lee, it was a quick win that left everyone in deep silence. Obito's speed was terrifying but his physical strength was just as terrifying, he didn't drag anything out unnecessarily.
Additionally, Dosu's skills were predictable, his teammates had techniques and attacks related to sound or air vibration and Dosu had a sound amplifier on his arm, it was obvious to anyone with a brain that he was going to use it by attacking so Obito quickly neutralized him.
"(coughs) We have a winner..." Hayate announced as Obito returned to his team, a quick and expeditious victory was ideal for a shinobi but despite that, everyone was somehow a little frustrated at not having seen more coming from a person who is so talked about.
Hayate wasted no time and announced the next match, Yakumo faced Shoji and the poor guy got caught in a soporific genjutsu right at the start of the fight.
Yakumo put him to sleep in seconds and before Hayate announced her victory as it was considered a knockout.
Many didn't understand what had just happened but for those who did, the majority were somewhat frightened by Yakumo and they all understood why this team finished in first place.
The last fight was announced to the great satisfaction of Hayate…
[Yakushi Kabuto VS Gaara]
Without even wasting everyone's time, Kabuto with a smile declared that he was giving up. He hadn't had the chance to face Obito so he had no interest in facing an ally in their plot like Gaara.
Thus, the final stage preliminaries have ended and The winners will be the participants of the final phase .
A draw was made and matches for the tournament were made. Because the number of participants didn't allow a duel in the final, the tournament will be divided into three branches which will lead to a three-way fight in the final. Thus, the fights were decided by branches.
First branch:
-Uzumaki Naruto VS Hyuga Neji
-Kurama Yakumo VS Haruno Sakura
Second branch:
-Temari Vs Nara Shikamaru
-Uchiha Sasuke VS Karin
Third branch:
-Rock Lee VS Gaara
-Aburame Shino VS Uzumaki Obito
Hiruzen told them that the final phase would take place in exactly one month at the large arena in front of an audience but also in front of the Kazekage and several officials sent by the daimyô of the great elemental nations as well as the representatives of the large villages which were the main sources of the requests asked to the ninjas so they had to prepare properly because those who'll have shown impressive mental or technical abilities will be named Chunins even if they do not win their fights.
After Hiruzen allowed them to disperse, the Uzumakis and their friends went to check on Hinata's condition.
Fortunately, even though she was asleep from exhaustion, all of her internal injuries had been healed and Naruto asked his brother what happened with Hinata's bite.
It was Karin and especially Yuko her mother who gave him explanations about this passive ability to the Uzumakis because they genetically had enormous vitality and Obito who was an anomaly had even more to the great amazement of Yuko herself.
Naruto tried to see if he was capable of the same thing but it was a failure, he had noticed that he could heal himself very quickly but it was mainly because of Kyubi's chakra, the Uzumaki genes were quite poor in him compared to his twin brother who was the result of the evolution of Uzumaki genes through Kurama's chakra.
(later)
"There's a technique I discovered and I want us to learn it together..." Obito told his brother as they both walked towards Ichiraku where they were going to enjoy their favorite dishes.
"Not now brother, during this month I will devote myself to Hinata. I have to face Neji and they practice the same taijutsu at different levels. I also have to help her progress so if it's not urgent you'll share your Jutsu with me after the exam, we'll learn it together..." Naruto told him smiling.
Obito, knowing that it was about Hinata, understood his brother and smiled back After all, he was the younger of the two .
During this entire month, he was going to devote himself to further improving his already high-level Fuinjutsu while learning the Flying Thunder God technique while his brother was going to do things on his own just like Karin.
However, before going to train he had to do something important that interested him in the writings of the second hokage, the summons.
An animal species caught Tobirama's interest in his journal and he had to get closer to it at all costs.
« Shame is mine for having discovered so late how advanced the Monkey King and especially his children were in knowledge and wisdom compared to us. Where we men tear each other apart, they sour their spirits.
Hiruzen himself has made incredible strides in his mastery of elemental natures because while we taught him the basics, he developed them to a frightening level there.
For now, I'm still watching him, but I know that when I join you my brother, I can count on him or Kagami for the future of the village.» were Tobirama's writings that had attracted Obito's attention.
